Administration Building - Brownfield Grant

Our Katahdin needs your engagement. We have an opportunity to revitalize and reimagine the use of the Administration Building at One Katahdin. We need your input. Here’s the situation:

On January 12th, 2017, Our Katahdin, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that supports community and economic development in the Katahdin region, purchased the former Great Northern Paper mill site including the Administration Building.

The revitalization of this historic building is important. However, this building has rapidly deteriorated over the past several years. There are a range of hazardous materials in the building that need to be remediated before serious development efforts can be undertaken.

Fortunately, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection has provided strong support to Our Katahdin to undertake Phase I and Phase II brownfield assessments that have identified the hazardous materials inside the building, and the extent of their damage. Upon completion of the Phase I and Phase II assessments, the owner then qualifies to apply for cleanup grants. There is a “Request for Proposals” issued by the federal US Environmental Protection Agency for brownfield cleanup grants up to $200,000 that is due November 16th, 2017. Our Katahdin is applying for one of these grants.

Here’s where you come in. We need your thoughts and feedback on the way forward. We want to post all the documents we have online, so you know everything we know. See those documents below. We are in the process of writing the grant to the EPA. We will share the draft application with you at least two weeks prior to the due date.

Also, as part of our effort to support the revitalization of the Katahdin region, Our Katahdin will host a public meeting to discuss its application to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a Brownfield Grant to clean-up the hazardous materials at the Administration Building at One Katahdin in Millinocket, and will present a DRAFT Analysis of Brownfields Cleanup Alternatives (ABCA) as well as initial plans for revitalization of the building.